Summertime in the Brainerd Lakes Area provides several opportunities for outdoor activities on lakes and rivers. However, there’s another option for vacationers who are looking for fun in Brainerd that doesn’t take place on water or land.

The Brainerd Zip Line Tour has been providing locals with an exciting aerial experience since 2016.

“The Brainerd Zip Line is owned by the Kerfoot family and they’re located near the Cities, they have a zipline tour down there called Kerfoot Canopy Tour and that opened up in 2013, that tour was real popular, so they decided to open one up in a resort area,” said Brainerd Zip Line Tour General Manager Mitchell Scott.

The summer is a popular time for the Brainerd Zip Line Tour, as a lot of out-of-towners take a break from the lake to check out the zip line course.

“It’s a good vacation activity, most of the people that come out and do this are people who are on vacation and people from local resorts come out; it’s a great family activity,” said Scott.

The tour consists of seven zip lines of different lengths and speeds, an exhilarating suspense bridge, and a 50-foot free fall jump.

“People think that we just do one zip and we don’t do one zip, it’s a whole two and a half hour experience and there are two guides that go with the group on the course; it’s a ride, but it’s also a group experience,” said Scott.

The course is not only beautiful and exciting, but it is also a great opportunity for someone to try something they have never done before.

“The activity draws you near to where you kind of have to step outside your comfort zone and push yourself and once you do that, you feel great because you are like, ‘wow, I just conquered this one experience, what else in my life could I really conquer?'” said Scott.

The Brainerd Zip Line Tour will continue throughout the summer and fall before closing in October to get ready for the winter season.

By — Chaz Mootz